Chime transformer switch



pril 9, 1955 L. w. RITTENHOUSE ETAL ,7 ,757

CHIME TRANSFORMER SWITCH Fi e a ch 24. 1953 2 Shecs-Sheet 1 Ap l 1955 L.w. RITTENHOUSE ETAL ,7

cums TRANSFORMER SWITCH Filed March 24, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 III:Illlll 5 lilu A TTORNEY (II-TIME TRANEiFGRMER SW11 CH Lloyd W.Rittenhonse, Flonenye Falls, N. Y., and Robert R. Huge, New Knoxville,James L. Taylor, Columbus, Ohio, assignors, by direct and mesneassignments, to The Ritt-enhouse Company, l no, i-i'oneoye Fails, N.55., a corporation or" New York Application March 24, iii- 53, SerialNo. $44,354

it) Claims. (6i. 266-113) This invention relates to a chime transformer,more particularly to the type of transformer employed in the operationof conventional door chimes and the like, and has for its object toafford a ccrnpactand practical control mechanism that can be arranged ina transformer housing and operates to effect intermittent sounding of achime as long as the controlling push button is held in depressed oroperating position.

The invention has for a further purpose to afford effcient means thatenables repeated operation of a chime at selected intervals of from oneto three cycles per second, the control mechanism being adaptable toconventional types of chime transformers for operation of eitherone-note, two-note, or multiple-note chimes.

A further object of the invention is to provide simple and reliablemeans for repeating the operation of a chime continuously as long as thepush button is held and to maintain a repeating interval much slowerthan the repeat operation of conventional repeating or so-calledcontinuous ringing chimes, but sufiiciently fast to aflord a pleasantrepeat tone which can be easily produced at a rate of about two strokesper second.

Another purpose of the invention is to afiord a chime repeatingmechanism governed by a thermo-switch that is highly sensitive, can beoperated with a small amount of current such as ordinarily available ina door chime circuit by means of a snap action that insures a swiftmovement of the circuit-closing switch to and from circuitclosingposition, and which can be housed in a space.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a door chimetransformer with a thermo-switch that has a faster action and is moresensitive than any switches heretofore available for the purpose, and tocontrol such a switch by adjusting means whereby the interval betweenstrokes of the chime or the number of strokes per second can be easilymodified to increase or decrease the speed of cycle.

An additional purpose of the invention is to afford a construction thatcan be easily assembled within a conventional door chime transformerhousing and lends itself to being confined within a relatively smallcompass cornpletely protected by the transformer housing while at thesame time affording more satisfactory and efiicient control of the chimeoperation than has heretofore been possible.

To these and other ends, the invention consists in the construction andarrangement of parts that will appear clearly from the followingdescription when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, thenovel features being pointed out in the claims following thespecification.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a plan view of a door chime transformer constructed inaccordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention:

Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the same;

Fig. 3 is an end elevation looking at the opposite end from Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view on the line 44 of Fig. 1 looking inthe direction indicated;

Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4 lookingin the direction indicated, and showing the outer yoke member andmovable contact in circuitclosing position;

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5 with parts broken away, showing theouter yoke member and movable contact engaged with the adjustable stopin circuit-opening position;

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Fig. 7 is a vertical sectional view on the line 7-'-7 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 8 is a vertical sectional view on the line 8-8 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 9 is a diagrammatic view of the electric circuit with thethermo-switch in circuit-closing position, illustrating a conventionaldoor chime with the connections to the transformer;

Fig. 10 is a detail sectional view on the line 1010 of Fig. 4, and

Fig. 11 is a detail sectional view on the line 11-11 of Fig. 4.

Referring more particularly to the drawings in which like referencenumerals refer to the same parts throughout the several views, 1designates the core of a conventional door chime transformer, 2 is ahousing within which is located a primary coil connected to the maincircuit conductors 3, and 4 is a housing containing the secondary coilindicated diagrammatically at 5, see Fig. 9. The housing 4 also containsthe thermo-switch controlled intermittent repeating mechanism associatedwith the secondary coil and connected with binding posts 6, 7 and 8respectively on the exterior of the housing t, see Figs. 2 and 5, saidposts 6, 7 and being adapted for connection with a door chime indicateddiagrammatically at 9 in Fig. 9 to provide either a single operation oran intermittent repeat operation, depcnding upon the selected bindingposts that are connected with the chime as will now be described.

The housings 2 and 4- are connected to the core 1 by bolts or screws 11extending through the flanges of the housings and through the core 1 andsecured by the fastening nuts 12 while 13 designate openings in aninsulating plate 1 5 through which the conductors 3 to the supplycircuit extend.

Referring to Figs. 4, 5 and 9, there is arranged within the housing andconnected to the secondary coil 5 in cries therewith a thermo-switchwhich is spring-biased in one direction so that when released it opensthe chime circuit, the thermo-switch being held normally incircuitclosing position by a thermal element in the form of a resistancewire which when cold contracts and imposes tension on the switch tomaintain the same in circuit-closing position. Thus when thechime-operating push button is operated, the chime is struck, and byholding the push button is closed position, current passing through theresistance wire heats the same and causes it to expand to a point whereit releases the switch which thereupon moves to its alternate positionfor opening the chime circuit. As soon as the resistance wire cools, itacts to move the switch back to circuit-closing position by a snapaction and this cycle continues as long as the operating push button isheld in chime-striking position.

To accomplish this, there is provided a conducting spring plate thatincludes an outer yoke member 15 and an inner tongue member 16, the freeend of the tongue member being spaced from the free end of the yokemember and connected thereto by a ccnvolute spring 17 that isoperatively associated with the tongue and yoke members and acts to holdthem on opposite sides of the center of the spring plate or to effecttheir movement in opposite directions when one of the pair is movedtoward the other.

The opposite end of the spring plate is fixedly mounted by means of asuitable screw 18 and insulating collar 19 upon an insulating base plate21 that is secured within the housing 4 upon insulating collars 22 andattached to the housing by means of screws 23 and nuts 24. Also fastenedto the base plate 21 and held by the screw 18 is a conducting plate 25arranged between the insulating base plate 2i and the insulating collar19, the conduciing plate 25 being provided with an upstanding portion 25from which a conductor 27 leads to the secondary coil 5 while 28 is aconductor leading from the upstanding portion 26 of the conducting plate25 to the binding post 8 from which connection is made to the chimealready described. 29 designates a conducting post mounted on theinsulating base plate 21 and connected by conductor 31 to the secondarycoil 5 of the ti e sformer and by conductor 32 with the aforementionedbinding post 7 from which connection is made to the chime 9, and in thisfashion when the front door push button 33 or the rear door push button34 is operated with connections established from the chime to thebinding posts 7 and 8, the front door chime or rear door chime, as thecase may be, is operated only once irrespective of how long the pushbutton is held, and the push button must be released and again depressedto secure a further operation of the chime, all of which is inaccordance with a conventional single chime operation. In order toeffect intermittent repeated operations of a chime as long as the pushbutton is held in operating position, there is provided on the outeryoke member a contact 35 that is arranged to engage a fixed contact 36carried by a fixed conducting plate 37 that is mounted upon a sleeve 38on the base plate 21 and held in place by a screw 39, while 41designates a conductor leading from the conducting plate 37 to thebinding post 6 from which connection can be made to the chime.

The spring plate including the outer yoke member 15 and inner tonguemember 16 connected by spring 17 is so positioned with relation to thefixed contact 36 that the outer yoke member when released and free tomove is actuated by spring 17 away from the fixed contact 36 so that therepeater circuit is broken at this point, and in order to hold the outeryoke member normally in position to close the circuit, there is provideda resistance Wire 42 that is connected at one end by soldering orotherwise to the outer end of the inner tongue member 16 at one sidethereof, see Fig. 4, while the opposite end of the resistance wire 42 isconnected to a lug 43 formed on the conducting plate and located belowand to one side of the spring plate. The resistance wire 42 is soattached and related to the inner tongue member and lug 43 that whencold, with no current passing through, it places tension on the innertongue member 16 and pulls the latter downwardly, referring to Fig. 5,and thus through the spring 17 actuates the outer yoke member in theopposite direction to move contact carried thereby against thestationary contact 36 and thus close the circuit at this point. When inthis position, the outer yoke member 15 is substantially straight butslightly below the fixed end of the spring plate and the fixed contact36 so that it is always spring-biased away from said fixed contact andunder the pressure of spring 17 which actuates it by a quick snap actionas soon as re sistance wire 42 is heated and expanded to release theinner tongue member 16.

The circuit through contacts 35 and 36 is in series with the secondarycoil 5 through the spring plate, conducting plate 25, conductor 27, alsothrough conductor 41 and binding post 6, so that when one of the chimepush buttons 33 or 34 is operated, the selected chime is initiallystruck, and if the push button is held down in operating position, thecurrent continuing through resistance wire 42 heats the latter andcauses it to expand sufficiently to release inner tongue member 16 whichthereupon moves upwardly, referring to Fig. 5, and through spring 17actuates the outer yoke member 15 downwardly away from the fixed contact36 and opening the circuit at that point. The circuit remains open atthis point until resistance wire 42 has cooled sufficiently to againexert tension on the inner tongue member 15, whereupon the latter ispulled back to its initial position, and causes movement of the outeryoke member in the opposite direction to again close the circuit whenmovable contact 35 engages the fixed contact 36.

This cycle of operations continues as long as the push button is helddown, and when movable contact 35 and outer yoke member 15 are movedaway from fixed contact 36 to open the circuit, such movement is limitedby a stop 44 located in the path of movement of the outer yoke member 15as the latter moves away from fixed contact 36. The stop 44 is in theform of a post threaded into and extending through the insulating baseplate 21 and through the housing, the outer end of the stop 44 beingindicated at 45 where it is accessible from outside the housing. Byturning the accessible portion 45 of the screw stop, the position of thestop with reference to the outer yoke member 15 can be adjusted to varythe distance through which the outer yoke member travels and thus theinterval between successive operations of the chime. The greater thedistance of the stop from the fixed contact, the farther the innertongue member must travel to effect return of the outer yoke member toall) circuit-closing position, and thus a wide variation in the timeinterval between cycles can readily be had. The intermittent repeatoperations can be controlled to produee a rate of from one to severalstrokes per second, and the usual preferred interval will giveapproximately two strokes of the chime per second. By this mechanism, itis possible to obtain repeated operations of the chime at a much slowerrate than conventional repeating bellringing or continuous ringingchimes, and at the same time attain a sufficiently short intervalbetween the repeat operations to insure a pleasing and satisfactoryoperation.

To effect intermittent repeat operations, connection is made to thechime from the binding posts 6 and 7, binding post '7 being the commonconnection in use at all times for either single or repeat operation ofthe chime. Binding post 6 is connected to the chime when intermittentoperation are desirable, and binding post 8 is connected to the chimewhen a single operation is desired at each push button operation. Whenthe intermittent circuit is connected and a push button is held down inoperating position, the circuit is completed from the secondary coilthrough conductor 27 to the conducting plate 25', thence throughresistance wire 42 to the spring plate, and through the outer yokemember and movable contact 35 to the fixed contact 36, thence throughconductor 41 to binding post 6 to the chime which at the same time isconnected to binding post 7 and through conductor 32 and conductor 31 tothe secondary coil. This completes the circuit, which remains closeduntil resistance wire 42 has been heated suificiently to expand andrelease the inner tongue member 15, changing the relative positions ofouter yoke member 15 and inner tongue member 16, so that spring 17effects a quick snap movement of the outer yoke member and movablecontact 35 away from circuit-closing position and against the stop 44,opening the circuit. The circuit then remains opened until sufficientcooling of resistance wire 42 contracts the latter and restores theparts to their initial position to again close the circuit, and thiscycle continues until the operating push button is released. By changingthe position of stop 4 the extent of movement of the inner tongue memberand movable contact and the degree of cooling of resistance wire 42necessary to restore the movable contact to circuit-closing position canbe modified to vary the interval between successive chime operations andobtain to a finely adjusted degree the exact interval desired withoutundue delay or excessive speed between the intermittent operations.

While the invention has been described with reference to the particularstructure shown herein, it is not confined to the mechanical orelectrical details disclosed, and this application is intended to coversuch modifications or departures as may come within the purposes of theimprovements or the scope of the following claims.

We claim: a 1. A thermo-s'rvitch including a base plate of insulatingmaterial, a spring conducting plate fixedly supported at one end on saidbase plate and including a movable outer yoke member and a movable innertongue memher, a spring connecting the free ends of said tongue and yokemembers, a fixed contact on said base plate on one side of said yokemember, a stop mounted on the base plate on the opposite side of saidyoke member. a movable contact mount d on said yoke member and engagingalternately with said fixed contact and stop, a conducting plate mountedon said insulating base plate. said conducting plate including a fixedpost, and a resistance wire having one end connected to said fixedconducting post and its opposite end connected to the free end of saidinner tongue member.

2. A thermo-switch, including a base plate of insulab ing material, aspring conducting plate fixedly supported at one end of said base plateand including a movable outer yoke member and a movable inner tonguememer, a spring connecting the free ends of said yoke and tonguemembers, a fixed contact on said base plate on one side of said yokemember, a fixed stop mounted on said base plate on the opposite side ofsaid outer yoke member, a movable contact mounted on said outer yokemember and engaging alternately with said fixed contact and said stop, aconducting plate mounted on said insulating base plate, said conductingplate including a fixed post, a resistance wire having one end connectedto said fixed conducting post and its opposite end connected to the freeend of said inner tongue memher, said stop being adjustable toward andfrom said fixed contact, and adjusting means for varying the position ofsaid adjustable stop.

3. A thermo-switch including a spring plate at one end and embodying amovable outer yoke member and a movable inner tongue member, a springconnecting the free ends of said yoke and tongue members, a fixedcontact arranged at one side of said yoke member, a stop on the oppositeside of said yoke member spaced from and adjustable toward and from saidfixed contact, a movable contact mounted on said outer yoke member andengaging alternately with said fixed contact and stop, and a resistancewire connected at one end to the free end of sale inner tongue memberand having its other end connected to a fixed conducting post, saidresistance wire when cold being contracted and acting to put tension onsaid inner tongue member and thereby actuate said movable contact tocircuitclosing position and when heated being expanded and acting torelease said inner tongue member and thereby actuate the movable contactinto engagement with said adjustable stop in circuit-opening position.

4. A thermo-switch including a spring plate fixed at one end andembodying a movable outer yoke member and a movable inner tongue member,a convolute spring connecting the free ends of said yoke and tonguemembars, a fixed contact at one side of said yoke member, a stop at theopposite side of said yoke "rember and adjustable toward and from saidfixed contact, a movable contact mounted on said yoke member andengaging alternately with said fixed contact and stop, a resistance wireconnected at one end to the free end of said inner tongue member and atits opposite end to a fixed conducting post located beneath said springplate to one side thereof, said wire when cold being contracted andacting to put tension on the outer end of said inner tongue member andthereby actuate movable contact to circuit-closing position and whenheated being expanded and acting to release said inner tongue member andthereby actuate the movable contact toward said adjustable stop incircuit-openlng position.

5. A thermo-switch including a spring plate fixed at one end andembodying a movable outer yoke ma her and a movable inner tongue member,a convolute spring connecting the free ends or" said yoke and tonguemembers, a fixed contact at one side of said yoke member, a fixed stopat the opposite side of said yoke member, a movable contact mounted onsaid outer yoke n'iember and alternately engaging said fixed contact andstop, said outer yoke member and movable contact being spring-biased andactuating the movable contact when released to circuit-opening position,and a resistance wire connecting the free end of said inner tonguemernher with a fixed conducting post, said resistance wire when coldbeing contracted and acting to place tension on said inner tongue memberand maintain the yoke member and movable contact in circuit-closingposition and when heated being expanded and acting to release said innertongue member and thereby permit said spring to actuate the outer yokemember and movable contact against said stop to circuit-openingposition.

6. A therrno-switch including a spring plate fixed at one end andembodying a movable outer yoke member and a movable inner tongue member,a spring connecting the free ends of said tongue and yoke members andactuating them in opposite directions, a fixed contact at one side ofsaid yoke member, a fixed stop at the opposite side of said yoke member,a movable contact mounted on said outer yoke member alternately engagingsaid fixed contact and stop, said outer yoke member being substantiallystraight when said contact is in circuit-closing position andspring-biased toward circuit-opening position whereby it moves tocircuit-opening position when released, and a resistance wire having oneend connected to said inner tongue member and its opposite end connectedto a fixed conducting post, said resistance wire when cold beingcontracted and acting to place tension on said inner tongue member andthereby maintain the outer yoke member and movable contact incircuit-closing position and when tested being expanded and acting torelease said inner tongue member and thereby permit said outer yokemember and movable contact to move against said stop to circuit-openingposition.

7. A thermo-"witch including a spring plate fixed at one end andembodying movable inner and outer meinbers connected at their free endsby a spring, a fixed contact at one side of said outer member, a fixedstop at the opposite side of said outer r nber, movable contact mountedon outer member and alternately engaging said fixed contact and stop,said outer member bein spring-biased and actuating said movable contactwhen released to circuit-opening position, and a resistance Wireconnected at one end to said inner member and at its opposite end to afixed conducting post and acting when cold to contract and place tensionon said inner member thereby moving said outer member and its contactinto circuit-closing position and when heated to expand and permit saidyoke member movable contact to move against said stop to circuit-openingposltion.

8. A thermo-switch including a spring conducting plate fixed at one endand embodying inner and outer oppositely movable members, a springconnecting the free ends of said inner and outer members, a fixedcontact at one side of said outer member, a fixed stop at the oppositeside of said outer member, said stop being adjustable toward and fromthe fixed contact, a movable contact mounted on said outer member andengaging alternately with said fixed contact and stop, said outer memberbeing substantially straight when its contact is in circuit-closingposition and spring-biased toward said adjustable stop andcircuit-opening position, and a resistance wire having one end connectedto said inner member and its other end connected to a fixed conductingpost, said wire when cold being contracted and acting to put tension onsaid inner member and thereby hold said outer member and movable contactin circuit-closing position and when heated being expanded and acting topermit said movable contact to move to circuit-opening position.

9. A thermo-switch including a spring conducting plate fixed at one endand embodying inner and outer oppositely movable members, a springconnecting the free ends of said members, a fixed contact at one side ofsaid outer member, a fixed stop at the opposite side of said outermember, a movable contact mounted on said outer member and engagingalternately with said fixed contact and stop, and a resistance wirehaving one end connected to the free end of said inner member and itsother end connected to a fixed conducting post, said wire when coldbeing contracted and acting to put tension on said inner member andthereby actuate said movable contact to circuit-closing position andwhen heated being expanded and acting to release said inner member andpermit movement of the movable contact to circuit-opening positron.

10. A thermo-switch including a spring conducting plate fixed at one endand embodying inner and outer oppositely movable members, a springconnecting the free ends of said members, a fixed contact at one sideor" said outer member, a stop at the opposite side of said outer memberand adjustable toward and from said fixed contact, a movable contactmounted on said outer member and engaging alternately with said fixedcontact and stop, a resistance wire having one end connected to the freeend of said inner member and its opposite end connected to a fixedconducting post, said wire when cold being contracted and acting to puttension on said inner member and thereby hold the outer member andmovable contact in circuit-closing position and when heated beingexpanded and releasing said inner member and movable contact 1ntoengagement with said adjustable stop in circu1t-opening position, andadjusting means for varying the position of said adjustable stop.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNlTED STATES PATENTS

